`Jats appreciate Sonia’s gesture’

Wednesday 5 July 2006

Special Correspondent

Issue of Jat as Chief Minister is still there: Harendra Mirdha

JAIPUR: Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s gesture of calling on Parasram Maderna, the party’s veteran Jat leader and former Rajasthan Assembly Speaker, at his residence during her visit to the State last week has evoked positive reactions from the Jat community, according to some insiders. Ms. Gandhi’s attempts to reach out to the community and the hints given in her address at the training camp of party workers at Padampura have rekindled the hope of Jats getting an upper hand in the party in the near future, they say.

"The Jat community appreciates Soniaji’s gesture and is grateful to her. It will bring about a positive change in the Congress prospects in Rajasthan," said Harendra Mirdha, former Minister and son-in-law of Mr. Maderna. Mr. Mirdha, son of another Congress veteran, Ram Niwas Mirdha, was some time ago tipped for the post of the Pradesh Congress Committee president.

"The party workers in villages who have been with the Congress feel honoured by Soniaji’s visit," Harendra Mirdha said talking to a group of newspersons here.

It is not clear what Ms. Gandhi had in her mind when she decided to placate the Jats, who had drifted away from the party after the 1998 Assembly elections in Rajasthan when their leader was denied the post of Chief Minister. However, Mr. Mirdha said the issue remained. "The issue of a Jat becoming Chief Minister in Rajasthan is still there," he said. The issue was a longstanding one and did not have its origin in 1998, he noted.

"The issue of a Jat CM did not start in 1998. It did not end in 2003 when the party lost elections in the State," Mr. Mirdha noted. According to Mr. Mirdha, the issue of a Jat CM had its origin from the time of Mohanlal Sukhadia as Chief Minister. "The reason for the late Jat veteran Nathu Ram Mirdha and even Kumbaram Arya before him quitting the Congress was this issue," he pointed out. "This is not a political issue alone. It is an emotional issue as well for the community."